quoteAfter spending some time in Italy and talking with some engineers who are and who have worked in Ferrari, it looks very good for Ferrari next year. They are absolutely convinced that Ferrari has the best drivers and that they are unbeatable. The only danger is that Fernando is pretty much the worst teammate one can have. If he can't win then he will do his everything to make sure that his teammate doesn't beat him and this has so far had a too big impact on both FA and Ferrari, who have lost because of that. Kimi is a big worry when they don't know how the new regulations suit him, Fernando hates that Kimi becomes his teammate, especially since he and the majority don't have a clue about what will not suit Kimi and what will suit himself better. He will hardly learn to know Kimi better, who again is very much aware of Fernando's style. Kimi has earlier proved to be one of the best team players and he can take *** No swearing*** if he is paid for it, Alonso again will hardly want to stay in the team if he is forced to play supporting driver if Kimi has the biggest chance of winning.

They think that Webber has the worst psyche on the grid, the dude does well 70 % but as for the remaining 30 % the dude is paralyzed which affects his results. All *** No swearing *** about Vettel's adaption - driving style + car - which makes him superior is just *** No swearing ***. It's no match for a better driver to adapt to a car, the problem is that everybody except the RBR-drivers haven't had a competitive car. They are of course of the opinion that RBR has cheated, at least more than anyone else has but FIA and tyre changes have been a pain for Ferrari.

Who will win, Kimi or Fernando? Neither one of them is favoured over the other, Kimi has a bigger talent but Fernando is a perfect training product and extreme in pointing out how all mistakes are the blame of others and he puts a high value on the car suiting him better than his teammate. They hope that Kimi gets to steer and make most decisions, it would favor both of them. Everybody thinks that Kimi is welcomed back to Ferrari except Fernando.

That the combo Vettel/Marko didn't want Räikkönen in their team proves that Ferrari made the right decision!

quoteThe problem for Alonso is that he will have to change his driving style next year, for Kimi it's the opposite again, the 2014 car will fit him like a glove, or like Allison pointed out; the technical specs for 2014 seem to be written for Kimi.

It's completely out of the question that Fernando would succeed with his normal psych-out against Kimi, Iceman doesn't have any nerves. When he started in Sauber he disappeared before his first race, the personnel went out looking for him and they found Kimi sleeping on the floor in Sauber's camper. Kimi usually takes a nap before the races.

I once asked Kimi about his pulse on the grid just before the start and he replied to me like this: I have to confess that it's lower than your pulse when you just watch.

Alonso again has the highest pulse of drivers, so it will be cool to see how ice and fire works together in Ferrari. The personnel is happy with Kimi's comeback, they started to be fed up with Alonso's whining about the car not being good enough, it's very rare that Fernando ever sees any flaws in himself as a driver.

Horner and Newey wanted Kimi to RBR, Marko and Vettel didn't, but it was Kimi who in the end said no thank you, perhaps he felt sorry for his buddy and didn't want to humiliate him by driving the *** No swearing*** out of him.

I admit the irony about the name; that is the surname. Indeed, it is a “Spanish” for Kimi. A Spanish with the capital ‘S’. I’m just talking about Antonio Spagnolo, new race engineer of Monsieur Le Revenant, aka Kimi Raikkonen. Spagnolo is a technician who hails from Friuli (*north east Italian region). As far as I know (and assuming anyone really cares about my opinion), he is very good. Let’s hope it goes the way ala Dyer (*Remember Dyer said, “by my calculation, we won by one point).

As expected, Smedley is going to Williams. And as previously announced, Andrea Stella, who was the interface of Kimi 1.0 (*first Kimi race engineer in Ferrari), remains with Fernando Alonso. So any subsequent “defects” such as the one of “Genii-Scemi querelle” (*remember the infamous team radio in Monza when Alonso said “you are really Genious/Idiots”? ) will still be interpreted by the only one authorized (*Stella)… The legendary A. Stella.

Then, Pat Fry will assume the role of coordinator in the pits, replacing a certain Clark (but I do not remember if it is written Clarke with the ‘e’ at the end or not). The role of Fry is a consequence of the fact that the technical director of the Red Fire & Ice (copyright owner is of the bloggara Occhi di Gatto, I suppose) (*Fire=Alo and Ice=Kimi) will be, as known for a while, another Revenant, aka James Allison. In short, come on…. it is a half-revolution… that would become three-quarters if the current Sportive Director, Rivola, is transferred to other duties. Fire & Ice. A Spanish for Kimi. The only thing that is missing is for Alonso to discover the indiscreet charm of vodka… and I salute you this way! http://www.racingnerds.com/?p=3510

Felipe Massa was back at Ferrari’s Maranello headquarters over the weekend to share in the team’s Christmas celebrations and to bid them a final farewell ahead of his move to Williams for 2014. And he came away with a rather special present - the V8 engine from the Ferrari F2008 which so nearly took him to the 2008 world championship.

“We started together so many years ago and I want to thank all of you, mechanics, engineers, everyone who works at the track and behind the scenes in Maranello,” said an emotional Massa, who first raced for Ferrari in 2006.

“Each one of you has always given me so much support, especially in the most difficult moments and I will never forget what Ferrari did for me when I had my accident in 2009. It’s in these circumstances that one understands what it means to be really loved and the atmosphere at Ferrari and the unique feeling of being part of the family is something I will miss a lot.”

The Brazilian driver also paid tribute to Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali, and found time to joke with his former team mate Fernando Alonso about the 2010 German Grand Prix, where he was famously asked to move aside for the Spaniard.

“I look on you as my big brother,” he said of Domenicali. “I thank you for everything you have done for me and for the opportunities you and the President have given me. Thanks also to you Fer, we will meet again on track and this time I will try not to let you through.”

Massa, who is succeeded at Ferrari by the returning Kimi Raikkonen, will now be spending some family time in Brazil before beginning in earnest his 2014 preparations with Williams.